5:12-146 In lieu tax.

146. a. Any casino licensee whose licensed premises are located in an area which has been declared, by the Department of Community Affairs and the division, to be a blighted area, or an area endangered by blight, may, for a period of not more than 25 years, enter into a written agreement with the Department of the Treasury, which agreement shall, with respect to real property held for use as a licensed casino hotel, provide for the payment of taxes to the tax collector of the municipality, in lieu of full local real property tax payments, in an amount to be computed by the sum of the following amounts, payable at the time specified by law for the payment of local property taxes:

(1) An annual amount equal to 2% of the cost of the real property investment. For the purposes of this section, "cost of the real property investment" means only the actual cost or fair market value of direct labor and all materials used in the construction, expansion, or rehabilitation of all buildings, structures, and facilities at the project site, including the costs, if any, of land acquisition and land preparation, provision of access roads, utilities, drainage facilities, and parking facilities, together with architectural, engineering, legal, surveying, testing, and contractors' fees associated with the project; provided, however, that the applicant shall cause such costs to be certified and verified to the Department of the Treasury by an independent certified public accountant, following the completion of the investment in the project; and provided further, however, that upon execution of an agreement pursuant to this section, only real property improvements made after July 6, 1976 shall be subject to the provisions herein; plus

(2) An amount equivalent to the difference between an amount that would have been payable as property taxes under the full local property tax rate and the amount calculated pursuant to subsection a.(1) of this section, which shall be payable from such profits, if any, as hereinafter defined in section 147, as shall remain after deducting therefrom interest and principal paid on mortgage loans applicable to the real property held for use as a licensed casino hotel. The total payments provided by this section shall not exceed the full local property taxes normally payable for the year.

b. At the time an applicant applies for a license under this act, he shall determine whether to exercise the option to pay in lieu taxes under this section or whether the property of the applicant shall be subject to the normal real property taxes of the municipality. This determination having been made and approved, the method selected may not be changed or altered during the term of the agreement.

c. Upon the filing of a certification by the State Treasurer in any year that an agreement has been entered into pursuant to this section, the in lieu tax provisions of this section shall be applicable with respect to the ensuing tax years.

L.1977, c.110, s.146; amended 2011, c.19, s.103.